Dry Mix Slag—High-Calcium Fly Ash Binder. Part Two: Durability

This work investigates durability of cement-free mortars with a binder comprised of ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS) activated by high-calcium fly ash (HCFA) and sodium carbonate (Na2CO3): the soundness, sulfate resistance, alkali-silica reactivity and efflorescence factors are considered. Results of tests show that such mortars are resistant to alkali-silica expansion. Mortars are also sulfate-resistant when the amount of HCFA in the complex binder is within a limit of 10 wt%. The fineness of fly ash determines its’ ability to activate GGBFS hydration, and influence soundness of the binder, early strength development, sulfate resistance and efflorescence behavior. The present article is a continuation of authors’ work, previously published in MSA, Vol. 14, 240-254.

Progress in Research on 20 MWt Coal-fired MHD Slagging Combustor

In this paper a brief introduction on design features,process of hot-fire check out testsand typical testing results of a 20 MWt coal-fired MHD slagging combustor is presented.Onthe basis of the testing results we conclude that all the design requirements of the combustorare satisfied.Analysis on the experimental results is also made.The reasons that causeslower rate of slag rejection are discussed,and the ways of raising slag rejection rate are con-sidered.

Dry Mix Slag—High-Calcium Fly Ash Binder. Part One: Hydration and Mechanical Properties

High-calcium fly ash (HCFA)—a residue of high-temperature coal combustion at thermal power plants, in combination with sodium carbonate presents an effective hardening activator of ground granulated blast-furnace slag (GGBFS). Substitution of 10% - 30% of GGBFS by HCFA and premixing of 1% - 3% Na2CO3 to this dry binary binder was discovered to give mortar compression strength of 10 - 30 to 30 - 45 MPa at 7 and 28 days when moist cured at ambient temperature. High-calcium fly ash produced from low-temperature combustion of fuel, like in circulating fluidized bed technology, reacts with water readily and is itself a good hardening activator for GGBFS, so introduction of Na2CO3 into such mix has no noticeable effect on the mortar strength. However, low-temperature HCFA has higher water demand, and the strength of mortar is compromised by this factor. As of today, our research is still ongoing, and we expect to publish more data on different aspects of durability of proposed GGBFS-HCFA binder later.

Surface Modification of Fly Ashes with Carbide Slag and Its Effect on Compressive Strength and Autogenous Shrinkage of Blended Cement Pastes

Surfaces of grade III fly ashes were modified through mixing with carbide slag and calcining at 850 ℃ for 1 h. Mineralogical compositions and surface morphology of fly ashes before and after modification were characterized by X-ray diffraction （XRD） and scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, respectively. Effect of surface-modified fly ashes on compressive strength and autogenous shrinkage of blended cement pastes was investigated. Microstructures of cement pastes were examined by backscattered electron （BSE） imaging and mercury intrusion porosimetry （MIP）. The experimental results showed that β-C2S was formed on the surfaces of fly ashes after modification. Hydration ofβ-C2S on the surface-modified fly ashes densified interface zone and enhanced bond strength between particles of fly ashes and hydrated clinkers. In addition, surface modification of fly ashes tended to decrease total porosity and 10-50 nm pores of cement pastes. Surface modification of fly ashes increased compressive strength and reduced autogenous shrinkage of cement pastes.

Fly Ash-based Geopolymers:Effect of Slag Addition on Efflorescence

Blended fly ash/blast-furnace slag geopolymers are focused on due to their excellent mechanical and chemical resistant properties. We investigated the effect of slag partial substitution for fly ash on the efflorescence of the resulting geopolymers. The efflorescence of geopolymer binders was inspected and evaluated through leaching tests. The efflorescence deposits on surface of the geopolymer binders were analyzed using XRD and SEM-EDS. The results showed that sodium and calcium cations leached from geopolymer binders reacted with the atmospheric CO2 and formed the crystal deposits, gaylussite and calcite, in the forms of granular and angular crystal particles. The slag addition led to a refinement of the pore structure of fly ash-based geopolymers, but an increment in the concentration of alkali leaching. The crystal deposits gradually developed in the pore volume of the binders, and finally exceeded the capacity of pore volume. The extent of efflorescence on the surface of specimens increased with the slag substitution. The visible efflorescence is therefore a result of available alkalis and pore sizes and volumes. Higher concentration of available alkalis and smaller pores （and volume） will lead to more intensive efflorescence.

Lowering ash slagging and fouling tendency of high-alkali coal by hydrothermal pretreatment

High-alkali species in coal are notorious for causing ash slagging and fouling incidents.In this paper,four high-alkali coals were individually subject to hydrothermal pretreatment(HTP),within a batch-type autoclave at 300 -C for 1 h,and the treated coals were analyzed,along with the oxygen-containing functional groups determined by Fourier transform infrared spectrometer(FT-IR).Then the alkali species and other components in the coal ash were quantified by X-ray fluorescence(XRF)for evaluating the ash slagging and fouling tendency.Apart from this,FactSage was adopted to simulate the occurrence and transformation of alkali species during coal thermal conversion ending at various temperatures.The findings indicate that the treated coals are superior to the parent ones in terms of certain remarkable changes via HTP.The moisture,oxygen and sulfur of the hydrothermally treated coals decline obviously,while the calorific value rises sharply.HTP could reduce the alkali species to less than 2%(%,by weight,equivalent to Na2O in dry ash),with a maximum removal ratio of 88.9%,lowering the ash slagging and fouling tendency.The proposed mechanism of HTP was that the alkali species in coal matrix became released due to the breakage of the coal functional groups and micropores during HTP.

Preparation of Reactive Powder Concrete Using Fly Ash and Steel Slag Powder

To decrease the cement and SF content of RPC by using ultra-fine fly ash （UFFA） and steel slag powder （SS）, the effect of these mineral admixtures on compressive strength of RPC were investigated. The experimental results indicate that the utilization of UFFA and SS in RPC is feasible and has prominent mechanical performance. The microstructure analysis （SEM and TG-DTG-DSC） demonstrated that the excellent mechanical properties of RPC containing SS and UFFA were mainly attributed to the sequential hydration filling effect of the compound system.

Flux mechanism of compound flux on ash and slag of coal with high ash melting temperature

The melting temperature of Z coal ash was reduced by adding calcium–magnesium compound flux(WCaO/WMgO=1). In the process of simulated coal gasification, the coal ash and slag were prepared. The transformation of minerals in coal ash and slag upon the change of temperature was studied by using X-ray diffraction(XRD). With the increase of temperatures, forsterite in the ash disappears, while the diffraction peak strength of magnesium spinel increases,and the content of the calcium feldspar increases, then the content of the amorphous phase in the ash increases obviously. The species and evolution process of oxygen, silicon, aluminum, calcium, magnesium at different temperatures were analyzed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS). The decrease of the ash melting point mainly affects the structural changes of silicon, aluminum and oxygen. The coordination of aluminum and oxygen in the aluminum element structure, e.g., tetracoordinated aluminum oxide, was changed. Tetrahedral [AlO4] and hexacoordinated aluminoxy octahedral [AlO6] change with the temperature changing. The addition of Ca2+ and Mg2+ destroys silica chain, making bridge oxide silicon change into non-bridge oxysilicon;and bridge oxygen bond was broken and non-bridge oxygen bond was produced in the oxygen element structure. The addition of calcium and magnesium compound flux reacts with aluminum oxide tetrahedron, aluminum oxide octahedron and silicon tetrahedron to promote the breakage of the bridge oxygen bond. Ca2+ and Mg2+ are easily combined with silicon oxide and aluminum oxide tetrahedron and aluminum. Oxygen octahedrons combine with non-oxygen bonds to generate low-melting temperature feldspars and magnesite minerals, thereby reducing the coal ash melting temperatures. The structure of kaolinite and mullite was simulated by quantum chemistry calculation, and kaolinite molecule has a stable structure.

Comparison of Hydration Properties between Cement-GGBS-fly ash Blended Binder and Cement-GGBS-steel slag Blended Binder

The hydration properties of cement-GGBS-fly ash blended binder and cement-GGBS-steel slag blended binder were compared. The experimental results show that the hydration rate of cement-GGBS- steel slag blended binder is higher than that of cement-GGBS-fly ash blended binder within 28 days, but lower than the latter after 28 days. The hydration of cement-GGBS-steel slag blended binder tends to produce more Ca（OH）2 than the hydration of cement-GGBS-fly ash blended binder, especially at late ages. Cement-GGBS- steel slag mortar exhibits higher strength than cement-GGBS-fly ash mortar within 28 days, but at late ages, it exhibits similar compressive strength with eement-GGBS-fly ash mortar and even slightly lower bending strength than cement-GGBS-fly ash mortar. Cement-GGBS-steel slag paste has finer early pore structure but coarser late pore structure than cement-GGBS-fly ash paste. Cement-GGBS-steel slag paste can get satisfied late pore structure and cement-GGBS-steel slag mortar can get satisfied late strength as compared with pure cement paste and pure cement mortar, respectively.

Clayey soil stabilization using alkali-activated volcanic ash and slag

Lime and Portland cement are the most widely used binders in soil stabilization projects.However,due to the high carbon emission in cement production,research on soil stabilization by the use of more environmentally-friendly binders with lower carbon footprint has attracted much attention in recent years.This research investigated the potential of using alkali-activated ground granulated blast furnace slag(GGBS)and volcanic ash(VA)as green binders in clayey soil stabilization projects,which has not been studied before.The effects of different combinations of VA with GGBS,various liquid/solid ratios,different curing conditions,and different curing periods(i.e.7 d,28 d and 90 d)were investigated.Compressive strength and durability of specimens against wet-dry and freeze-thaw cycles were then studied through the use of mechanical and microstructural tests.The results demonstrated that the coexistence of GGBS and VA in geopolymerization process was more effective due to the synergic formation of N-A-S-H and C-(A)-S-H gels.Moreover,although VA needs heat curing to become activated and develop strength,its partial replacement with GGBS made the binder suitable for application at ambient temperature and resulted in a remarkably superior resistance against wet-dry and freeze-thaw cycles.The carbon embodied of the mixtures was also evaluated,and the results confirmed the low carbon footprints of the alkali-activated mixtures.Finally,it was concluded that the alkali-activated GGBS/VA could be promisingly used in clayey soil stabilization projects instead of conventional binders.

Tests on Alkali-Activated Slag Foamed Concrete with Various Water-Binder Ratios and Substitution Levels of Fly Ash

To provide basic data for the reasonable mixing design of the alkali-activated (AA) foamed concrete as a thermal insulation material for a floor heating system, 9 concrete mixes with a targeted dry density less than 400 kg/m3 were tested. Ground granulated blast-furnace slag (GGBS) as a source material was activated by the following two types of alkali activators: 10% Ca(OH)2 and 4% Mg(NO3)2, and 2.5% Ca(OH)2 and 6.5% Na2SiO3. The main test parameters were water-to-binder (W/B) ratio and the substitution level (RFA) of fly ash (FA) for GGBS. Test results revealed that the dry density of AA GGBS foamed concrete was independent of the W/B ratio an RFA, whereas the compressive strength increased with the decrease in W/B ratio and with the increase in RFA up to 15%, beyond which it decreased. With the increase in the W/B ratio, the amount of macro capillaries and artificial air pores increased, which resulted in the decrease of compressive strength. The magnitude of the environmental loads of the AA GGBS foamed concrete is independent of the W/B ratio and RFA. The largest reduction percentage was found in the photochemical oxidation potential, being more than 99%. The reduction percentage was 87% - 93% for the global warming potential, 81% - 84% for abiotic depletion, 79% - 84% for acidification potential, 77% - 85% for eutrophication potential, and 73% - 83% for human toxicity potential. Ultimately, this study proved that the developed AA GGBS foamed concrete has a considerable promise as a sustainable construction material for nonstructural element.

Combined Recycling of White Rice Husk Ash as Cement Replacement and Metal Furnace Slag as Coarse-Aggregate Replacement to Produce Self-Consolidating Concrete

According to empirical evidence,high levels of energy and considerable amounts of natural resources are used in the production of concrete.Given the context,this study explores self-consolidating concrete(SCC)that includes rice husk ash(RHA)and metal furnace slag(MFS)as an alternative to cement and the natural aggregates in standard SCC mixes.In this study,mixture designs are investigated with 20 wt.%of RHA,10–30 wt.%of MFS and water-to-powder material ratios of 0.30 and 0.40.Based on the findings regarding the fresh-state,hardened-state,and durability properties of the resulting SCC mixes,it is evident that the use of RHA and MFS can significantly improve the properties of concrete.The highest compressive strength was achieved for SCC with 20 wt.%RHA and 10 wt.%MFS.This outcome should be used as a basis for further investigations into the production of concrete materials that are both high-performance and sustainable.

Durability of Seawater Mixed Concrete with Different Replacement Ratio of BFS （Blast Furnace Slag） and FA （Fly Ash）

Using seawater in concrete can be considered as one of the sustainable approaches in construction industry not only to save the freshwater resource but also to promote the use of abandoned seawater resource, especially in the construction at the uninhabited area close to the sea where the procurement of fresh water is difficult. In this study, durability against chloride attack of seawater mixed concrete with different replacement ratio of BFS （blast furnace slag） and FA （fly ash） is discussed and the life time until the occurrence of corrosion crack is evaluated. The results show that： （1） Chloride penetration rate of seawater mixed specimens with BFS and FA is lower than that of freshwater mixed OPC （ordinary Portland cement） specimens; （2） Oxygen permeability of seawater mixed specimens with BFS and FA is almost the same or lower than that of freshwater mixed OPC specimens; （3） Total life time （corrosion incubation period and propagation period） of seawater mixed specimens with BFS and FA is almost the same or only slightly shorter than that of freshwater mixed OPC specimens. From the results, it was confirmed that the usage of seawater in concrete mixing is feasible in concrete with the appropriate BFS and FA replacement ratio.

Compatibility of Fly Ash and Slag from Circulating Fluidized Bed Boiler for Concrete Beam

The applications of fly ash and slag from circulating fluidized bed boiler were studied as mineral admixture and aggregate for steel reinforced concrete beam.The results show that the concrete beam with fly ash and slag from circulating fluidized bed boilers has a similar ultimate cracking load coefficient as the ordinary cement concrete and a higher bending moment limit.Under the same load,it has a smaller deformation than the ordinary concrete.

Coal Ash Slag Penetration Behavior on Cr_2O_3-Al_2O_3-ZrO_2 Bricks

The penetration behavior of different kinds of coal ash slags into chrome corundum bricks was studied by cup test. As a preliminary attempt,the oxides of Fe2O3 and MgO were added into coal ash to reduce the erosion of refractories. Different cup tests were carried out to study coal slag erosion to the refractories. FactSage was used to simulate the phase diagram of the main chemical compositions in coal ash and in the refractories. Both results agreed with each other. The results show that the elements in coal slag can penetrate into bricks and the penetration deepens with the duration increasing; it is difficult for Fe but easier for Ca and Si to penetrate into bricks; different kinds of melting coal ashes penetrate into refractories differently and the penetration depth of silicon and calcium can be significantly reduced by adding oxides into coal ash.

Comparative Studies on Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Granulated Blast Furnace Slag and Fly Ash Reinforced AA 2024 Composites

Composites are most promising materials of recent interest. Metal matrix composites (MMCs) possess significantly improved properties compared to unreinforced alloys. There has been an increasing interest in composites containing low density and low cost reinforcements. In view of the generation of large quantities of solid waste by products like fly ash and slags, the present expensive manner in which it is discarded, new methods for treating and using these solid wastes are required. Hence, composites with fly ash and granulated blast furnace (GBF) slag as reinforcements are likely to overcome the cost barrier for wide spread applications in automotive and small engine applications. In the present investigation, AA 2024 alloy-5 wt% fly ash and GBF slag composites separately were made by stir casting route. Phase identification and structural characterization were carried out on fly ash and GBF slag by X-ray diffraction studies. Scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy EDS was used for microstructure analysis. The hardness and compression tests were carried out on all these alloy and composites. The SEM studies reveal that there was a uniform distribution of fly ash and GBF slag particles in the matrix phase and also very good bonding existed between the matrix and reinforcement. Improved hardness and mechanical properties were observed for both the composites compared to alloy;this increase is higher for Al-fly ash composite than Al-GBF slag composite.

Slagging characteristics of molten coal ash on silicon-aluminum combustion liners of boiler

In order to study the slagging characteristics of boiler combustion liners during pulverized coal stream combustion, the slag samples on the surface of combustion liner were investigated by X-ray diffractometry, scan electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray analysis, and the transformation characteristics of the compositions and crystal phases were studied. The results show that the size of slag granules decreases as the slagging temperature increases; the crystallinity of coal ash I reduces to about 48.6% when the temperature is increased up to 1 350 ℃, and that of the coal ash II reduces to about 65% when the temperature is increased up to 1 500 ℃; the encroachment of molten coal ash to the combustion liner is strengthened. At the same time, the diffusion and the segregation of the compositions in combustion liners have selectivity, which is in favor of enhancing the content of crystal phases, weakening the conglutination among molten slag compositions and combustion liner, and avoiding yielding big clinkers. But the diffusion of the compositions in combustion liners increases the porosity and decreases the mechanical intensity of combustion liner, and makes the slag encroachment to the liner become more serious.

Mechanical and environmental properties of geopolymer-stabilized domestic waste incineration slag in an asphalt pavement base

Domestic waste incineration slag(WIS)includes fly ash and slag.Fly ash is classified as hazardous waste because it contains heavy metals.Most of slag are directly stacked or landfilled due to problems such as large output and low utilization rate.Harmless treatment is imminent.If WIS is used effectively in the road engineering,which can realize the high-quality and high-efficiency recycling of WIS,and it is of great significance to save resources and protect the environment.This study applies a geopolymer prepared from WIS fly ash as a stabilizing agent in WIS blending macadam for use as a pavement base mixture,and reports the mechanical properties(unconfined compressive strength,splitting strength,and resilience modulus)of the geopolymer-stabilized WIS blending macadam(GeoWIS).The leaching concentrations of harmful heavy metals of GeoWIS soaked in water were also investigated.Finally,the strength formation and heavy metal stability mechanisms were explored.The unconfined compressive strength,splitting strength,and compressive resilient modulus of GeoWIS all increased with increasing geopolymer content and decreasing WIS content.The strength of GeoWIS was derived from its geopolymerization and hydration products(C-S-H gel,N-A-S-H gel,and AFt).When the geopolymer content reached 12%–14%,the GeoWIS without natural macadam met the strength criterion of the asphalt pavement base.Through physical adsorption and chemical bonding,the geopolymer significantly reduced the leaching of harmful heavy metals.In GeoWIS with 50%WIS and stabilized with 10%geopolymer,the Cr,Ni,Cd,and Pb concentrations met the grade III groundwater standard.Concentrations of heavy metals leached from GeoWIS are low and exert little impact on environment.

生物质热转化过程中积灰沾污结渣特性及趋势预测研究进展

为阐明生物质灰的沾污结渣特性及其趋势预测研究现状,使生物质能热转化利用过程更加安全,在综合分析生物质灰沾污结渣的危害及机制的基础上,从沾污结渣特性与沾污结渣预测两方面归纳国内外研究进展,梳理出影响结渣的主要因素——灰分组成、反应温度、气氛和添加剂等;并对沾污结渣趋势的预测方法和研究趋势进行分析。针对实际工程中锅炉受热面结渣和腐蚀问题,可以采用混烧、混入添加剂、水洗、酸洗、改变受热面材料、优化锅炉和烟道结构设计、优化反应条件等措施解决。在生物质灰沾污结渣趋势预测方面,目前并没有完整的统一标准,简单沿用煤灰的结渣指标存在严重的不适应性,且现有的预测方法通常只考虑固态或熔融成分对结渣的影响,而忽略了碱金属、氯、硫等元素挥发与温度变化的关系。因此,以热转化过程中碱金属的气-固分配趋势为基础,结合不同温度下生物质灰的特点及成灰特性,建立适用于不同温度下生物质灰的沾污结渣预测模型,是下一步研究应重点关注的问题。

Prediction Model of Compressive Strength of Fly Ash-Slag Concrete Based on Multiple Adaptive Regression Splines

Accurate prediction of compressive strength of concrete is one of the key issues in the concrete industry. In this paper, a prediction method of fly ash-slag concrete compressive strength based on multiple adaptive regression splines (MARS) is proposed, and the model analysis process is determined by analyzing the principle of this algorithm. Based on the Concrete Compressive Strength dataset of UCI, the MARS model for compressive strength prediction was constructed with cement content, blast furnace slag powder content, fly ash content, water content, reducing agent content, coarse aggregate content, fine aggregate content and age as independent variables. The prediction results of artificial neural network (BP), random forest (RF), support vector machine (SVM), extreme learning machine (ELM), and multiple nonlinear regression (MnLR) were compared and analyzed, and the prediction accuracy and model stability of MARS and RF models had obvious advantages, and the comprehensive performance of MARS model was slightly better than that of RF model. Finally, the explicit expression of the MARS model for compressive strength is given, which provides an effective method to achieve the prediction of compressive strength of fly ash-slag concrete.